Kurigram Municipality, with an area of ​​276.43 square kilometers, is home to about 2 lakh 61 thousand people. Almost half of the roads in the municipality are unpaved.

The condition of these roads, renovated using low-quality materials, is now dire. The main road of Kurigram city is the Roads and Highways Department. Although the road is supposed to be in good condition, it is now one of the reasons for the endless suffering of the municipality’s residents.

Even though it is a first-class municipality, why would the city residents travel on such third-class roads is everyone’s question. Although this 53-year-old municipality is first-class on paper and in writing, most of its roads are ‘third-class’.

According to the municipality’s engineering department, there are 117.50 kilometers of paved and 46.40 kilometers of unpaved roads in this municipality. More than half of these roads are full of potholes.

This municipality is facing a funding crisis. In this situation, a total of 4 projects have been undertaken for road renovation and drain construction. Out of these, work on 30.62 kilometers of roads is ongoing.

In addition, work worth 4 crore 8 lakh taka of Physical Infrastructure Development (RDNPP) is underway. A tour of the 9 wards of the municipality shows that most of the roads have abandoned drainage systems.

As a result, water accumulates day after day, creating numerous potholes in most places. In most places, the pitch-concrete has washed away. Most of the roads are submerged in water even after a little rain.

Especially the roads from the city’s entrance, Bir Pratik Taramon Bibi Mor to Ghoshpara and from Gowhar Park Mosque to Islami Bank are now one of the causes of suffering for the city’s residents.

Businessman Abdul Jalil said, “I don’t think any municipality in Bangladesh has had roads left unimproved for such a long time. There is no worse road anywhere in this district. The union roads are also much better than this municipality.”

It is known that more than 5 thousand battery-powered easy bikes and rickshaws ply on the main roads of the city, as well as the roads of the neighborhoods, every day.

According to the residents of the municipality, the municipality renovates a few roads almost every year, which is very responsible. As a result, the roads return to their old appearance within a few months of the renovation.

Due to the long-term lack of renovation, the city residents have to face indescribable difficulties in moving on some roads.

Truck driver Suman Mia said, “You will be greeted by skeletal roads from whichever direction you enter the city. The appearance of almost every neighborhood road is damaged. The suffering increases even more when the monsoon season arrives.

Sahabuddin, a resident of Kurigram municipality, said that garbage and garbage are lying everywhere in the city. Looking at the third-class roads here, there is no way to understand that this is a first-class municipality. After a decade, sufficient cement and rods are not being used in the drainage works.

Party people do not care about the locals because they are contractors. They are managing the municipal officials and doing whatever they want.

Common citizens complain, “Most of the roads in the neighborhoods are so dilapidated that rickshaw pullers do not want to go to some neighborhoods. They also charge higher rents on the excuse of dilapidated roads.

Due to poor quality work, these roads break down within a year. The dishonest officials of the municipality are swallowing crores of taka of the government’s budget by doing only show-off work.’

Several members, including the convener of the Kurigram Anti-Corruption Movement, said, ‘There is a huge deficiency in the quality of road renovation work under the municipality.

If the quality of any work is not ensured and if there is a lack of transparency and accountability, the people will suffer. Public suffering is the daily companion of the citizens of this municipality.’

Even after visiting the office of the Executive Engineer of the Kurigram Municipality, Ayub Ali, he could not be reached for four days in a row. However, when spoken to on the phone, he said, “I am in training in Rangpur, we will talk later.”

Although Kurigram Municipality Administrator B.M. Qudrat-e-Khuda was called several times in this regard, he did not receive it.